Open AccessMonte Carlo study of the GTP cap in a five-start helix model of a microtubule.
Author(s) -
Yi-Der Chen,
Terrell L. Hill
Publication year - 1985
Publication title -
proceedings of the national academy of sciences of the united states of america
Language(s) - English
Resource type - Journals
SCImago Journal Rank - 5.011
H-Index - 771
eISSN - 1091-6490
pISSN - 0027-8424
DOI - 10.1073/pnas.82.4.1131
Subject(s) - monte carlo method , helix (gastropod) , microtubule , gtp' , physics , biophysics , chemistry , biology , nuclear magnetic resonance , mathematics , microbiology and biotechnology , statistics , enzyme , ecology , snail
Earlier Monte Carlo studies on a single-helix model of the GTP cap at the end of a microtubule are extended here to a more realistic five-start helix model of the microtubule end. As in the earlier work, phase changes occur at the microtubule end: the end is either capped with GTP and growing slowly or uncapped and shortening rapidly, and these two regimes alternate (at a given tubulin concentration) at steady state. Macroscopic rate constants for the two-phase model are deduced from the Monte Carlo results. The macroscopic rate constants lead to properties that are in semiquantitative agreement with related experiments of Mitchison and Kirschner.